MY VILLAGE GIRL EXPERIENCE IN THE ABROAD PT 2

September 30, 2017

Hi, Lovelies! I hope everything has been good with you. So I’m back again with another of my village girl experiences in the abroad. The responses on the last one were amazing, thanks a lot guys. Y’all know I am an in-built Ijebu somebody. In case you missed it catch up here!

When you finally find your feet in places you have only travelled to in your mind while reading Danielle Steele novels, Chimamanda Adichie’s Americanah and seeing Hollywood movies in your cozy house in Mowe, it gives you the feeling that your lifelong dreams can still come true. When I saw the statue of liberty before my very eyes, I screamed in excitement. Of course, I had seen it before. While watching movies in Mowe I would imagine myself ….looool. But this was different, it was real!! Life and direct!

The Statue of Liberty

As the village girl that I am, I wiped my eyes in disbelief. I wiped it a second time as if to take away any dust that will deprive me of taking in the beauty of the sights and scenes before me. I took out my phone to take a picture! Ah mean this is it ooo

I was really scared that my phone could fall into the big ocean…

I was about to start a video when one Oyibo guy made an attempt to plant himself in my front, I quickly stepped forward before he could fully balance on the spot.

Unku you cannot come and spoil my Insta stories oooo, biko shift ooh I don’t like what I hate.

He glared at me, obviously unable to deduce what I had just said and moved away. Na you Sabi, I said in my head. Abeg shift make I see Road, shebi you people have been seeing it since. Allow the JJC to enjoy too na.I took so many pictures and videos of the Statue of liberty like it was a project I had to submit.Till now I feel guilty each time I delete any of the pictures but I need space on my phone abegWhen we got off the gigantic Staten Island Ferry, we got into the New York train (I’ll tell my train station drama later). Ah! those types where people fall in love in Hollywood movies. I sat quietly watching everyone, still trying to pinch myself to be sure that this village girl was not just daydreaming in a BRT bus going from Berger to Obalende/CMS. But No, it was all real!! When we got off the Train, we walked a little further and then I saw it. Right before me was the Madison Times square, chineke! I was overjoyed!! Ehn ehn see groove oooChai! So in this life me sef can say I have been to this historic place, I put my hand on chweest to thank Baba God. I walked on and saw the New York Times building and a plethora of other places I recognised due to too much Holywood movies.

Fashion Avenue

I immediately began to feel on top of the world.Feeling bangdadang! Ah mean what are you talking, I was feeling pompous for a bit! Singing in my head for a moment that nasty song, Haters, shove it up your….If you don’t know that song what have you been doing on Instagram? You know there’s this feeling you get when you leave your home country (after many years of being stuck in there) to visit another country. Can you relate? However, this one was wide in disparity from what I felt when visiting places like Benin Republic, Togo and Ghana. The conceited feeling I got when I was standing in front of Madison was remarkably distinct from what I felt seeing the Burj Khalifa when I visited Dubai. I think it didn’t just come from knowing that I was not in Mowe, Yaba or Balogun market. It felt surreal that I was stepping my foot in places where my favourite characters from TV series I loved to watch like Suits, Empire and Maid in Manhattan have stepped foot. I was standing in a place where I had watched on my TV in Naija, celebrities, Billionaires and world recognised entrepreneurs I look up to have been here.

My shoulder was going up on its own accord, I now have a foggy idea of how/ where invisible shoulder pads come from ( Like Woli Arole will say Ogo ti Gbera ask a Yoruba friend for translation) Why was I feeling cool? I am still not understanding? I guess this is how it feels when one is in the actual abroad… the Amrika! (in jenifas voice) I tried to put myself in check…na only tour we dey do ooh dem never even dash me money ooo. I quickly reminded myself to sit down and be humbleI passed by all those random people who would just start singing on the streets, people were gathering to watch them, dropping money for the street entertainers. If I hear say I drop money, lai lai. I have a video of this… I’ll try and upload later jare There were corners where people made bets and had their future horoscope read to them. Are those things even real? I didn’t branch there sha, they must not hear at home that I joined back gang in the abroad. Seeing all these things also made me realise that the world I used to see as far isn’t so far after all. It’s still a really small world . It also made me realise that everything is just a matter of time and chance, just like the Bible says. The places I could only imagine when reading tonnes of novels my Father in law gave me back then, have now become my reality!This Life… Na WA! I’ll tell you about my village girl experience at the train station and at the airport in my next posts in this series. See my grocery store village girl experience here if you missed it

PS; I am no longer prouding, I guess it was just the breeze that blew on me on that very dayFeel free to leave a comment and share! Is it normal to feel pompous when you step foot in the abroad? All ye Ajala travellers Oya come and tell us ooo